Improvement in ordnance and fire-arms



R. WHITE.

Ordnance and Fire-Arm.

No l57,607.

Patented Aug. 28, 1866.1

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UNITED STATES PATENT FFTCE ROLLIN WHITE, OF BRIDGEPORT, CONNECTICUT.

IMPROVEMENT INORDNANCE AND FIRE-ARMS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 57,607, dated August 28, 1866.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, RoLLrN WHITE, of Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ordnance and Fire-Arms; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part ot' this specification, in which- Figure l is alongitudinal vertical section of a two-chambered breech-loadin g cannon with Fig. 2 is a planof the Figs. 3, 4, and are views of some of Fig. 6 is a censame. the details of the invention.

tral section of the percussion-priming on a` scale larger than the other figures.

Similar' letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

This invention consists in certain improved means of providingfor the starting of the projectile gradually by means of a small charge of powder,` and to give it an accelerated velocity by means of charges which are successively caused to act upon it.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

The cannon represented is fitted with a slide containing two chambers; but my invention is applicable in connection with asingle chamber, or with a slide or other movable piece containing more than two chambers, or with arotating many-chambered cylinder.

A is the chambered slide, fitted to a strong frame, B B', to the front of which the barrel C is iirmly secured, and the back of which frame constitutes a recoil-shield. a, a are the chambers, bored cylindrically right through the slide, and of considerably larger caliber than the bore of the barrel. Each chamber a a is furnished inside with a packing-ring, D, an expanding breech-piece, E, and a ring, F, in which the projectile is seated on its insertion into the chamber, the said rings being all of steel or other hard metal.

The ring D, of which Fig. et is a perspective view, occupies the front portion 0i' the chamber, to. which it is fitted accurately, and may be packed gastight by packingbands it, of soft metal. The interior of said ring is of such caliber that the projectile G, if of soft metal, or the packing b, by which it is surrounded, it made of hard metal, may slug7 within the said ring in passing through it, and so force the said ring right up tight against the rear end of the barrel, and so prevent any escape between the chamber and barrel, while the projectile is passing from the chamber. This ring D may be a plain cylinder, but is represented in the drawings (see Figs. l and 4) as having two recesses, c' c', Fig. 4, in its rear end for the reception of metal cartrid ges c c, containing accelerating charges of powder, such cartridges being attached to a thin ring, d, which tits up against the rear of the said ring D, and serves to hold the said cartridges in place. These cartridges, which, with their ring d, are represented by Fig. 5, are to be fired after the passage oi' the projectile by lire from' the main charge, or a charge farther back in the chamber, the lire being admitted by forcing in plugs n n, Fig. l, or setA ting lire to fuses'occupyin g a similar position.

The expanding breechpiece E occupies the rear portion of the chamber a a, to which itis iitted accurately, and it is hollowed out in front in the form ot' a cup, the sides of which are made thin to give them iiexibility, that they may be expanded aga-inst the sides of the chamber by the pressure ot' the gases evolved by the explosion ot' the first or main charge, c, Fig. l, which is contained in a cartridge placed in the cavity of the breech -piece E. The said breech-piece is fitted with a percussion cap or priming, L, of peculiar construction. (Represented in Figs. l and 6,but best in Fig. 6, which shows Vit on a larger scale.) The said cap L is made with a hollow flange, p, around its head for the reception of the percussion-priming` and, instead of being fitted to a nipple, is fitted into the v entprovided in the rear of the breech-piece E, and the vent is countersunk on the outside for the reception of the flange p.

The hammer M, working through the recoilshield B', is arranged to strike on the iiange p, and so explode the priming. Therecoilshield holds the cap L in place against the force of the explosion, and the pressure ot' the gases of the powder, acting against the interior of the sides of the cap, causes them to expand within and entirely fill up and closeV the vent.

The ring F is fitted accurately to the bore of the chamber and inserted therein in front of the breech-piece E and the cartridge e, and the said ring is grooved externally and circumferentially, forthe reception of a band, f, of soft metal, to make it perfectly gas-tight within the chamber. rIhe projectile Gr, em-

ployed in combination with this ring, should have its rear portion of conical or cono'idal form, as represented, or be otherwise constructed to enable it to be received withinjthe said ring, the interior of which is made of suitable form to constitute a seat for the projectile.

The charge e of powder, when ignited, not only acts upon the rear of the projectile itself, but also acts upon the whole rear of the ring F with an effect to drive forward the projectile, and the pressure upon the combined areas of the projectile and the ring E is, of course, more effective in overcoming the inertia of and starting the projectile than if only act-in g upon the projectile itself.

II is an accelerating-cartridge, of annular form, iitting to the chamber a a a a in front of the ring F, and also fitting to the exterior of the projectile. This cartridge H, which is of metal, surrounds the projectile when the chamber is loaded, and so serves to center itin the chamber. rIhe said cartridge may be fired by iire admitted from the cartridge e after the ball has moved sufficiently forward in the chamber, such iire reaehin g the powderin the said cartridge H either by driving in plugs of leather, wood, or other material, g g, Fig. l, in the said cartridge, by means of fuses occupying the position of g g, or by means of percussion-caps applied to nipples h 7L, provided on the front of the said cartridge, the said caps being exploded by striking the ring I) as the cartridge is driven forward by the ring F along with the projectile. This` cartridge H may be made with its inner and outer cylinders and rear end of stout metal, but with its front end very light, so that when the explosion of its charge takes place the front end will be blown out, and so allow the gases to act upon the projectile, the whole of the cartridge, except the front end, constituting, in that case, strictly speaking, a portion of the gun itself', and a very important portion, inasmuch as it serves to center the projectile in the chamber.

I I are accelerating-chambers provided in the sides of the barrel G for the reception of accelerating charges of powder. These chambers are closed at their inner ends or muzzles by plugs 7c 7c, of wood or other material, which will be easily blown into the gun by pressure from the chambers, and closed at their outer ends by screw-plugs ZZ. The vents m m to these chambers open into the gun some distance in front of the chambers themselves, to prevent the charges being fired by windage before the projectile has passed the chambers themselves, the plugs k k preventing the iire passing directly through the muzzles of the chambers, so that in case of fire passing` to the vents by windage it will' not reach the chambers till the rear end of the projectile has passed their mnzzles. The firing of the charges in these chambers I I before the projectile had passed their muzzles would be very liable to burst them; but by the arrangement ofthe ventsin front of the said chambers such an accident is prevented. When the charges in the said chambers are red their muzzle-plugs 7c 7c are driven into the barrel of the gun.

To insert the charges in the chamber fitted up as above describerhit must be first brought out of line with the barrel and recoil-shield, and all the appurtenances except the ring D removed from it through its open rear end. Thebreech-piece E then has the cap L applied, the cartridge e is placed in the said breechpiece E, and thecartridge H and ring F applied to the projectile. The cartridges c c are next placed in the chamber within the cavities c c of the packing-ring D, followed by the projectile, cartridge H, ring F, and breechpiece E. and when the chamber is to be fired it is returned to the position in line with the barrel and recoil-shield.

XVhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. rlhe ring F, of larger circumference than the projectile, applied, in combination with the enlarged chamber a a, to form a seat for the projectile, and to traverse in the enlarged chamber and carry the ball to the rear ofthe bore of the barrel, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

2. Providing the acceleratiiig-chamber constructed in the barrel of a piece of ordnance or fire-arm with vents m, opening into the barrel in fro-nt ot the muzzle of the said chamber, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

BOLLIN VHITE.

Witnesses:

MASON WHITE, l?. GRoUNDEsoN. 

